The Simplest Package
by g. deputy
Summary: Arnold realizes what Helga meant when she told him that the most beautiful things come in the simplest packages.


**_AN: this is my first attempt at a fanfic and I chose to intertwine it with a song by Keane._**

**_ I don't own Hey Arnold! but wouldn't it be nice? :) thanks for reading_**

_I walked across an empty land_

_I knew the pathway like the back of my hand_

This wasn't going to be easy for either of them. Leaving the place where one grows up is no walk in Tina park… even though Arnold would, in a way, be returning to his roots. With heavy feet and a heavy heart, he walked to Helga Pataki's house. So much had changed so fast.

"Hey football head." Helga said as she opened the door of her house. Her voice lacked the usual scorn and disdain she feigned around Arnold. Arnold didn't really mind. After the class' return from San Lorenzo, the insult had become more of a pet name.

" Will you take a walk with me?" he whispered to the floor. He couldn't look into her blue orbs at the moment. What exactly was he supposed to say to this girl? He had only just turned ten after all…

_I felt the earth beneath my feet_

_Sat by the river and it made me complete_

The silence hung heavy in the air between them. The silence was not uncomfortable, but Helga knew what was coming. Arnold had led her by the hand to the bridge that overlooked the small river in Tina park. This was the very spot where Helga would day dream, gazing across the water, eating ice cream, seeing Arnold's head in the clouds. She even remembered afternoons with Pheobe, where she would spit in the river and, like the love sick girl she was, would see the outline of a football in the rippling water.

"So I guess Big Bob doesn't need to call you Orphan Boy anymore huh, Arnoldo?" the young girl smiled weakly.

_Oh simple thing where have you gone_

_I'm getting old and I need something to rely on_

Arnold's emerald eyes glistened with joy at the thought of his parents. Helga was right; the hurtful term no longer applied to him. But it still, in a certain sense, applied to Helga.

As happy as Helga was that her beloved was reunited with his parents, she couldn't help but feel a little cheated. Even without his parents, Arnold had the love and support from the borders and his wacko grandparents. She smiled at the memory of Pookie calling her Eleanor whenever she would visit Arnold.

"Look who's here Tex! Your dear Eleanor has returned from her official White House business!"

Instead of opening the door to her house to an endless trail of animals, she opened it to silence. Silence, darkness, and emptiness. At one time, it seemed as these things would swallow her whole and consume her spirit.

_So tell me when you're gonna let me in_

_I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin_

The duo instinctively followed their feet away from the park. During the time that they have spent together, Arnold had grown to like the 'bully' more and more. He know there was more to her than she would ever let anyone see; including him. The boy knew she had suffered abandonment that was somewhat similar to his own. He could see it in her face and every time she threated to bring out Old Betsy. When the kids were alone, he could break through the exterior to the reach the soft mushy inside that was the true Helga. The boy felt it his duty to chip away the mask, to help her like he had helped so many.

"I don't want your help or pity, Arnold," she had explained to him calmly in the safety of his room,

"I want you… to love me."

She had only told him those words a few weeks ago but it might as while have been years ago.

Arnold had never felt more fear than in that moment.

_I came across a fallen tree_

_I felt the branches of it looking at me_

_Is this the place we used to love?_

_Is this the place that I've been dreaming of?_

Before they realized it, the kids had arrived at a lot that at one point was home to Mighty Pete. Arnold and his friends could save it from being torn down, but they were no match for nature. It had been struck by lightning the summer before they were to start the fifth grade. It was a blow to the entire neighborhood to find the tree that had been there for generations on its side, charred and never to stand again. No one even had the heart to pick up the ruble that used to be their tree house. It seemed fitting that the debris remain there, as some sort of memorial for all who had enjoyed Mighty Pete's shade.

"I never thought I would see Mighty Pete fall." Helga said as she took a step forward to stroke the ensnaring branches.

"All good things come to an end I guess."

Arnold swallowed hard. She knew that he needed to leave Hillwood. Worse yet, she knew that he knew that she knew. But he wasn't ready to tell her his plans just yet. He wanted to enjoy these last few moments with Helga on this cherished lot.

"Look Helga!" he exclaimed as he pointed to a small patch of white that was poking out from underneath the fallen trunk. "Daisies."

Arnold once worked in a flower shop owned by Mrs. Vitello. "Daises are actually a mix of two flowers Arnold!" Mrs. Vitello had explained. "It has the rough, brown surface and then the soft petals growing right underneath. A daisy can grow just about anywhere. They are somewhat plain but there is no doubt they're survivors."

Arnold walked toward the patch and gingerly plucked a flower. As he walked back to Helga, he said, blushing, "These… remind me of you." He placed it in Helga's outstretched hand. She smiled as the fragrance tickled her nose.

Arnold had grown to love daisies.

_Oh simple thing where have you gone_

_I'm getting old and I need something to rely on_

_So tell me when you're gonna let me in_

_I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin_

"Do you remember the first day we met, Helga?" Arnold asked as they got themselves comfortable on the fallen tree.

"How could I ever forget our first day of preschool?" Helga asked, mostly to herself. "That was the day…" She stopped short. Could she really tell her love what that simple gesture of sharing an umbrella meant to her? How could she possibly explain to Arnold that he had been the savior she needed when no one seemed to care?

"I know I know," Arnold sighed. "That was the day I made you the laughing stock of our entire classroom." As guilty as he felt, he had to chuckle. This whole bully charade was caused because of a plate of graham crackers.

"Actually Hair Boy, I was trying to say that…that was the day you … saved me."

Arnold looked Helga in the eyes for what felt like the first time. The persistent anger in her eyes wasn't there; the storm had calmed itself.

"You were the first person that ever showed me kindness, Arnold. On that day when I believed I was nothing, you came to my rescue with an umbrella and a tiny blue hat." She smiled. "You had me at 'I like your bow'".

Arnold reached for her hand and squeezed it gently. As he stroked her slender fingers, he realized that she had helped him shape his view on life. As he got out of his grandpa's Packard and saw the mud splattered girl all those years ago, the little boy decided that if he could help, he would. If he saw a single ray of hope in a troubled sky, he would catch it and never give up hope.

_And if you have a minute why don't we go_

_Talk about it somewhere only we know?_

_This could be the end of everything_

_So why don't we go_

_Somewhere only we know?_

As regretful as she was to leave, Helga stood up. "It's getting late and I need to get home before Big Bob blows a fuse."

"I'll walk you home."

While they made their way towards the Pataki house, Helga wondered if Arnold would say good bye at all. Maybe she would wake up the next morning and he would be gone without a word. Perhaps it would be the easiest way.

"Helga," the boy began after a stretch of silence, "I have a chance to start a life with my parents. We have the opportunity to be together as a family and…"

"I know, Football Head. When do you leave to Central America?" She said, holding back tears. She would tough it out; this was something Arnold needed to do and she refused to hold him back.

"In the morning." He kept his gaze downward.

They had reached the stoop of Helga's house when she tentatively asked,

"Is this it, then?"

"I don't know how long I'll be gone… it wouldn't be fair to ask you to wait for me". Arnold stepped onto the stoop to be eye-level with Helga. He looked into those ocean eyes and knew that Helga's love could consume him, if he allowed it. He felt so very small.

"I'll always be here Arnold. Friend or… otherwise." She reached for the door knob, trying to run away and hide like she had been doing since preschool. Arnold grabbed her hand in midair.

"I'll miss you every day Helga," he whispered. Before the young girl knew it, he had leaned in towards her and placed a tender kiss on her forehead.

While she watched Arnold head toward Vine Street, she touched her fingers to the place his lips had lingered. As the sun began to set and the last of her beloved's shadow rounded the corner, she prayed with all her might: "Please, Arnold. Please, I only want for you to leave a small space for me in your heart."

That night, in the safety of her room, she cried the tears she had been harboring since she was three.

_This could be the end of everything_

_So why don't we go_

_Somewhere only we know?_


End file.
